Parting Shot: Nora Scarlett

In her new book of photographs, Trunks of the Gunks (Black Dome Press, 2016), Nora Scarlett captures the artistry of nature.

Whereas many artists have made the panorama of the Shawangunk Ridge their focus, Scarlett goes smaller scale. Each image is a tightly framed snapshot of a tree inside Minnewaska State Park, the Mohonk Preserve, or the grounds of the Mohonk Mountain House.

Roots jut up from a solid bedrock base in one image. A tree with a large chunk bitten out of it balances on a roadside, engulfed in mist in another. One of the photos inside the "Smile" section shows a tree bent in a forward-leaning bow, its orange, yellow, and green leaves shining bright against a field in autumn. In another section of the book, a tree is twisted, seemingly in yogic form, into a freestanding circle.

Scarlett includes a key to the photographs at the end, but seekers be warned. "I can't find some of the trees," Scarlett said with a bit of jesting exasperation, "But they're out there somewhere." Portfolio: Norascarlett.com.

Located in the hamlet of Gardiner, Sunflower Art Studios nurtures artists in grades K-5.

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